


Your Words Warmed Me

by NorthoftheNorth



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Curses, Ice Powers, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-11-30
Packaged: 2019-06-20 08:43:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15530505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NorthoftheNorth/pseuds/NorthoftheNorth
Summary: Every nation has a weakness that none of the other nations know about. Canada's turns out to be a bit more dangerous to his health than most.





	1. Just a normal day

**Author's Note:**

> This story is told from Japan's perspective as he writes down the minutes for the meeting, and later on in Canada's pov.

Every nation has a weakness, a little flaw to them that if they were human would have been their genetic defect. The Ancients figured that it was whoever had created them's way of saying they were just like their human citizens, and that they weren't perfect.

It went without saying that even in "families" the secret of what exactly each person's weakness was simply was not brought up. Even if it was an empire that had many colonies, no one ever asked what the weaknesses were. Everyone was told that they shouldn't let anyone else ever know about their weakness either, or else it would kill them. All the young colonies believed this, when they were young they always believed everything their colonizer said though. It was just one of the things they didn't question as they got older.  
In some cases this was almost fatal in the end, Canada was one such case, and the only one that any of the other nations could remember.

But, that's getting ahead in the story. As this is the official record book for the world meetings I should begin from the beginning of the story, and not give a hint of the end. I should probably scratch out the start of this entry before Germany checks it for mistakes later, he can be very perfectionist. Shoot, I'm treating this like my journal at home.  
Japan leaned back from the table frowning at the page in front of him.

"I guess I should take this home with me to recycle properly and start off on a fresh piece of paper. Why the janitors don't put a recycling bin in the meeting rooms remains a mystery to me."  
________________________________________  
Mathew, otherwise known as the country of Canada, had found that he was always cold lately, and nothing he did ever changed that. Even then lying under his covers and reading a book to wake up while wearing several layers of clothes did nothing to change the fact that he was still shivering.

He truly didn't want to get up; but the clock read 7:28, and the meeting started at 9:00. He groaned a bit, and mumbled about how much he didn't want to; but he still got up, and it wasn't like there was anyone there that was listening and would care.

He knew that going to this meeting would just make him feel colder.

He'd known early on that his weakness was that his body temperature is regulated by the gestures and words of those people around him. Nice words or a hug equalled a nice warm body temperature, and having glares directed towards him and an angry tone or argument left him shivering like winter had arrived early and suddenly to all of his provinces and territories.

He did his best to be agreeable and not anger anyone, but there's only so much you can do when you have the States for a brother/doppelganger.

Looking in the mirror he could see that his lips were starting to turn blue, and his shivering had increased just from the good morning "who?" he'd gotten from his pet polar bear. The best he could hope for today was to make it through to the next without hypothermia.

The meeting had started as he suspected, everyone ignored him. When it first started he'd thought they were joking around, then he realized after the first century of this treatment had passed that this was no joke. They honestly couldn't even see him. It's like only seeing what you want to see. They only ever saw him when they wanted to see his brother, they never wanted to see him, and that made him feel colder on the insides in a totally different way.

He'd tried once to voice his opinion, but England had glared at him and told him to shut up, and followed that up by saying that no one wanted to listen to his stupid ideas...America.

He'd felt his internal temperature drop even more.

That's when the meeting had started to get weird, with the room tilting around him in a weird way, was it supposed to do that?, he couldn't tell for sure; but, he could have sworn he saw Russia looking at him, finally, quizzically.

"His skin is waxy, and his pupils are dilated. He is shivering. England, I suggest you stop him from trying to remove his sweater. He has hypothermia." Russia said in his pleasant tone of voice, the one he used to appear childish. Mathew knew what it really meant, Russia didn't know what to do. He knew Russia just felt nervous. He didn't know why though.  
Mathew tried to speak, but even in his unaware state could tell that something was wrong with his words.

"His speech is slurred," Russia noted.

He didn't quite understand what was going on, all he could concentrate on was the cold. He didn't think it had ever gotten to be this bad before. Then he felt a burst of warmth, and sighed, it was bliss.

Russia sounded panicked now. "England, put my coat over him now!"

Mathew could still hear them, a bit, but his vision had gone black. He couldn't see, and the sounds of the other nations was being replaced with a ringing tone. Until suddenly it wasn't. There was no ringing tone, or the other nations, or the pins and needles he'd felt all over his body. There was nothing.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this chapter contains two versions of the same chapter. One I have the next chapter all ready for, but I want to know what you guys think of both and which ones better.   
> Cheers!

"Someone needs to take off their clothes."  
"What?" England exclaimed, turning towards Russia. The other G8 members mirrored his sentiment with the identical looks on their faces.  
He sighed, then tried to explain it in the simplest of ways that he could. "It is what you do when a person gets hypothermia. You need to warm them up as much as you can. We are taught to get naked and make the person with hypothermia naked and crawl into a sleeping bag with them." *  
"That's preposterous."  
"It's what is taught."  
"None of us are getting naked, or taking off Canada's clothes."  
"Then you deal with his hypothermia."  
"Wait a minute, Commie." America interrupted. "We don't even know if he has hypothermia. Don't you only get that when it's like really cold outside? It's not even cool in here. Maybe he has heat stroke or something."  
"I doubt it. But if you wish, you can always drive him to the hospital and see that I am right when they get around to examining him there. If he loses the use of any fingers or toes on the way then you will know that it is your fault and I will be happy with that."  
"No way, dude. It would be your fault."  
"Do you even listen to what you say?" Russia asked, then he sighed and stood up from his couched position by Mathew's body. As he stood up, he grabbed onto Canada's arms, lifting him up and settling him into his own arms-bridal style. "You go to the hospital closest to here and describe his condition. I will put him into a luke-warm bath while the ambulance is being called. England, I believe I asked you to call them."  
England looked startled at his name suddenly being uttered in this exchange.  
Perhaps he'd ben zoning out? How careless.  
"Right," England said as he took out his cellphone and started dialing 911. "I forgot about that."  
America turned to England, and lifted a hand to point at Russia accusingly. "Don't tell me that you're going to do what that commie says!"  
"Don't point," England snapped. "It's rude. And I don't believe I have to tell you anything. It's not like I have to report back to you about anything. I can choose to do as I wish. And I choose to follow Russia's instructions as he knows more about this than I do."  
"And I am no longer communist, America." Russia couldn't help but add in.  
America snapped his gaze over to glare at Russia, but his glare dimmed somewhat with Russia's next words.  
"Right now, it is best that you listen to me. Canada and I are both winter type nations. I know what needs to be done in the cold, or at least in the type of cold that we get, and I know what happens in that cold. Canada has hypothermia. Stop arguing with me about this."  
Russia had to bite back the following remarks he wished to say about how if America didn't he could just kidnap Canada or something to treat him and perhaps shoot America point blank with his handgun; but, that would just be pointless and would give less weight to his words. It would be better just to let his actions talk for him.  
America hesitated, then nodded. "Fine, you can take Canada to have a bath. But only a bath, you hear?"  
Russia smiled. "Of course, comrade." He said before he carried Canada out of the room and down to the lower floors of the building they were in where the hotel rooms would be.  
It was when he was going down the stairs, of course, and away from the conference room that he realized that to give the country in his arms a bath he would need to take his clothes off and that he should have just kept the American with him so that he wouldn't have to. Why did he always think of these rather important things when it was already too late?  
________________________________________  
The boy had woken up in his arms as he was fumbling for his key card to get into his hotel room. At least he didn't have to worry about him not waking up anymore. That was one worry scratched off his list. Now it was best to ignore Canada's attempts to get away and open up the door now that the blasted key card had finally decided to work. The infernal device.  
Canada was roughly dropped onto the bed and restrained when he went to get back up again. He counted out each of Canada's breaths and felt his forehead. Still chilly and a bit wet with sweat. That would need to be fixed.  
Then he reached for Canada's hands.  
________________________________________  
When Ivan goes to check Mathew's wrist for a pulse, Mathew jerks his hand away. And when Ivan then went to reach for Mathew's other hand, Mathew had jerked that one back, too, to join his other hand at his chest where he curls them together, and himself around them, in a pitiful attempt to keep them hidden from view.  
"Ah, I see how it is. You don't want to touch my hands. Why?" Ivan asked.  
"I don't have to answer."  
"That's fine, but I'd like you to."  
"You'll laugh."  
"Do I really seem like a laughing type of person?" Ivan asked. He had certainly never thought of himself as such, but if that was the impression he was giving off...well, then he had some work to do in changing that.  
"Well, no." Mathew admitted.  
"So? Your answer?"  
"It's stupid."  
"You're beginning to anger me with your hiding, Canada. I suggest you do not do so further."  
"I-well...my hands are always cold. Everyone always jerks away from me when I touch them. I don't have my gloves on right now, and I'd prefer it if you didn't touch me right now. I don't want to inconvenience yet another person with my temperature."  
"...Is that all? Then I won't mind. Mine are always cold too."  
"Oh really?" Mathew says it sarcastically. And Ivan doesn't mind, for once. He just takes Mathew's hands and wraps his around them.  
Both of their hands were like ice.  
Mathew's eyes widened, his pupils dilated, and Ivan worried he was about to faint again, before Mathew smiled and it seemed as soft as the first snowfall of the year, just waiting to be leapt into and develop happy memories for.  
"See?" Ivan said. "So, I won't mind your cold hands." And Ivan smiled for the first time during their conversation.  
The smile was one of merely eleven that Mathew had witnessed him wear during all of the meetings they had…enjoyed as diplomats for their respective countries in the past one hundred and plus years, that reached his eyes and actually made him look happy.  
"We can be cold together." Ivan continued, and Mathew felt a sudden bloom of warmth hotter than any fire he'd lit before. This was a fire centred in his chest, and it left him breathless.

 

________________________________________  
Alternate chpt 2  
________________________________________  
When Canada went down, Russia was the first to act. The rest of the fools obviously had no idea what to do, so he'd grabbed the younger Nation and headed to his own rooms, swiftly dealing with the idiot American when he tried to interfere along the way.  
The only good thing that had come out of the little argument the rest had decided to engage in was that his momentary panic, which honestly had confused him as he hadn't thought he really cared about the other violet-eyed nation, had been replaced by logic. His reaction before had been to send the honey-coloured blond to the hospital and call for an ambulance but that couldn't be done. For one, humans did not have a special weakness, which Russia was sure must be connected to the younger nations sudden turn for the worse. After all, it wasn't near cold enough in their meeting room to send even the thinnest skinned individual into mild hypothermia, let alone the full-blown case Canada was presenting with. Point number two was, of course, that Nations heal much too fast to be considered even slightly normal should whatever this was resolve on its own within moments of arrival, but after his initial condition had been seen. So no, Canada simply could not go to a human emergency room. Like with all Nation problems, this would need to be dealt with internally.  
They were in his room now, and Russia's hands went through the practised motions of doing everything he could to make sure the Canadian was warmed up, he even called General Winter in to draw all the cold out of the room so that even he had to abandon his precious scarf or risk staining it too much with his sweat as the room heated up to sauna-like levels.  
As he worked, his mind wandered. He'd had plenty of opportunities to use these skills over the years. In a country as cold as his own, he had grown tired of watching his countrymen lose their lives. If he could, he'd tried to help...whatever the other Nations claimed, he wasn't heartless, just uncertain and distant in the mind from everyone. He had other things to occupy him...normally.  
But then 30 minutes, then an hour, then another hour passed by with no change in the Canadians complexion or symptoms. Thankfully, he didn't appear to be getting worse. Still, Russia's mask cracked. By the time it hit the hour and a half mark, he was even muttering to the blond how he needed to become better, please, that he couldn't die on him.  
And he got better. Slowly, so slowly that Russia didn't notice at first until on automatic, he took the blond's temperature again and saw what it was, and what it meant. The blond was no longer in severe hypothermia. He was nowhere near in the green yet, but this was finally improvement instead of worsening.  
It was only then that as he stayed there working and yet still thinking about the issue and what could have possibly brought it on that it occurred to him that the blond had gotten better when he was talking to him.  
So he kept going. Telling him about he did care, even if he tried to hide the truth from himself as well as everyone else. Because, well, why not be a little more honest than usual? The blond was still unconscious. He wouldn't hear.  
Finally, when it was almost starting to become 3 hours after he brought the Canadian to his room, Russia heard his breathing pattern change and just slight languid movements.  
The blond was no longer completely unresponsive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fridays upload will still go on as normal. Each Friday upload will likely be a new story as I have quite a few I want to put up. Random updates through the week will be new chapters done up for current unfinished stories.   
> Hope you like it!   
> Hugs and Wuvs  
> North of the North


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This hasn't really been edited much at all so sorry for any mistakes.  
> This one goes with just one of the versions of chpt 2 from last update ;)

At the gasp, Russia's eyes narrowed, and he stuck the thermometer held lazily in his left hand back into Canada's mouth. At the beep that soon followed off from that, the platinum-blond's eyebrows lifted as the Russian took in what it read.

"Well, well, well, us Nations have fast healing abilities but this is quite impressive. First, you go from still responsive with a temperature indicative of severe hypothermia to this where now you're at a normal body temperature and seemingly normal over the course of just a few minutes."

His deep purple eyes raised to look into Canada's lighter hue, and locked there. "Is there anything you care to tell me, Canada?"

Canada was speechless. Then he whispered, "You know my name?"

Russia frowned. "Of course I do. Are you silly? Now, is this linked to your weakness?"

His eyes glittered, dangerously. And Canada remembered how Russia was rumoured to be the most dangerous Nation among them on a personal level aside from his military or country state. He was a big man, and cunning too. And never subtle about what he wanted.

But what did he have to lose? He was disrobed and laid bare anyways. Why not do so with more internal things as well? Such as his greatest secret. The one secret everyone had and yet no one else knew, or was supposed to know.

"Yes, it does." Canada replied.

And Russia nodded.

"Alright." He said back. "Get changed when you will. Your clothes are right there." He called back, pointing towards the pile he'd left by the tub as he exited the washroom, closing the door gently behind himself.

Canada blinked, already feeling a chill as he was left alone.

Though that could also have been from beyond the door, maybe a draft had snuck in, but somehow he didn't think so.

He missed the larger man already. Though he was only on the other side of the door, the chill he felt radiating outwards again and threatening him with the enveloping freezing from before hinted at how much he needed the presence of the other. Russia had made him feel warmer than he'd felt in such a long time.

But that warmth was not to last. He barely knew the man. What could he do to make him stay close by anyway?

Nothing.

So he dressed. And, surprisingly, Russia was extremely considerate and protected him, keeping him in the room and away from the others and even bringing him back his notes to copy the next day until it was time for him to go home.

Away from the large Russian and the surprising warmth he carried for such an otherwise cold country.  
________________________________________  
Days later and Canada was still at home, alone. The cold had come back to envelop him again. The chill had crept into him and with each step away and onto the plane he'd felt it gather and pool beneath his body like an ice-covered pond. By the time he'd gotten off the plane, even wrapped in his usual casual hoody he felt no relief. Coming back home, he'd soon stopped shivering.

He was past that point so soon? Distantly, it worried him. but he didn't heed his body's call for what it needed. He couldn't satisfy it anyway.

This time, alone, no one besides his bear was there to hear him fall.

Only one other who had been with him as well since the dawn of his life knew what had happened and went to fetch the other man they considered a grandchild of sorts.  
In a touchdown of blizzard that could not affect Canada beside the blizzard already raging inside his body, General Winter set Russia down on the blond's lawn.

"Help him." He commanded, and was gone.

Russia looked up at the cottage style house and nodded, his eyes steely with determination.

Even if he could not be helped with his weakness, he now had another clue to what Canada's was, and damn propriety but the smaller blond had grown on him and he couldn't just let him suffer if he could help. The General may be cruel at times, but his embrace also helped bring back life with the waters he left behind when his snows melted.

If Canada was suffering from the ravaging chills again, then The General already had his touch on the blond. All that was left now was for him to become better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please review, it lets me know if my writing is good or not and what to fix.  
> Hugs and wuvs  
> North of the North


	4. The General is found again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unsure of what to do and with Mathew/Canada still not getting better, Ivan/Russia hunts down The General.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still do not use a Beta so if anything is weird, please mention it.
> 
> Russia =Ivan Braginsky  
> Canada = Mathew Williams

Note: Russia/Ivan Braginsky's Curse is the ominous aura that surrounds him. I'd imagined it to be similar to a Cassandra Curse. It acts in such a way that it makes it so that no matter how Russia acts, people still think the worst of him. Inspiration of course coming from the ominous aura he gets surrounded by in the anime episodes.  
...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Ivan went to the clearing where he'd been so scared and called out for help so long ago. It was the only place he could think of where the General would come to meet him. He'd been trying to contact the man for days now, and growing more and more worried for Mathew the whole time.

Canada hadn't gotten worse, but he certainly hadn't gotten better, and even Nations have their limits with how much they can heal. For how long Mathew had obviously had his Curse acting so harshly towards himself, Ivan wasn't that surprised that the other Nation's healing powers appeared to have exhausted themselves. 

Beyond that, Ivan hated to think how he might not be able to help the boy. He wasn't used to not getting what he wanted, and beyond that pride and arrogance he was also scared, though he tried to hide those feelings from himself. 

He just didn't know what to do, what could help the blonde violet-eyed Nation he'd been looking after, or at least trying to, or even where to turn to for help in his task. 

He was, to put it simply, at his wit's end. He needed The General to give him another clue. Which would be a nice idea if the General were to ever show up but it seemed as if he'd vanished and even using his curse to his advantage to make the Baltics and other winter countries to call for the General didn't seem to be doing squat either. So, Ivan was, understandably, both very annoyed and frustrated. But he was also willing to do whatever he could to make sure Canada got well again. Hence, he'd had to leave the blond, and found it curiously hard to pry himself away from looking after the other violet-eyed Nation, so he could bring himself back to his land and go to the one place he thought that even The HGenerasl, cold many that he was, would be hard-pressed to ignore him asking for help from.

At first, after calling out, even begging for The General to come and help him with Canada, and growing more and more embarrassed by the minute when even his more heartfelt admissions of needing the smaller blond to get better were met with silence, he started to grow worried and fearful, to be honest, that he'd merely wasted time coming here and had probably even worsened Mathew's recovery by leaving him in the hands of Lithuania under threat that the brunette was to care for him, his Curse of course adding on its ominous nature and settling the "or else" quite nicely into the other's mind for him.

It was when he sighed, and started gathering his magic up to transport him to Canada through their Nation linked magic that he felt a chill settle into the air that wasn't there previously as snow started to blow around and blur his sight until Ivan had to shield his face even as he saw the beginning of a dark figure approaching.

The figure stopped, and Ivan felt that, despite the snow still swirling around that it was safe enough to look up.

"So, you have come to ask for my aid, little one?" The General asked.

Ivan's mouth twisted down. He wasn't little, and he didn't like how The General, despite his usefulness at times always seemed to view him as a child.

"That would be helpful, yes." He replied after a pause.

The General nodded.

"Walk with me." He demanded.

And though Ivan did not normally follow orders, this was no ordinary being he was with, and hopefully the other would prove again to be useful to him, so he hurried along to walk alongside the dark wintry figure, waiting in silence for the other to begin, as he knew he would.

…

Ivan stepped out of the world ley key, (one of the magical lines of power all Nations friendly with each other could use to bring themselves to each other rather than waste time using human methods and which always worked to bring a Nation to any part of their own territory), he'd used to draw on his and Canada's Nation connection (helped along quite nicely by the wavy golden hairs he'd ahem lifted off of the blonde currently lying in a near constant state of hypothermia inside the house he'd stepped out in front of.

Despite the trouble, at least he know knew how to help the other.

What a curious Curse the other had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? Anything I should add or am missing so far? ;)


	5. Another clue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mathew awakes

*Ivan/Russia's POV*  
________________________________________  
As Ivan went to turn the doorknob and step into Canada's house, he felt a cold breeze wrap around him in a hug, and not in the way that is commonly thought of when non-Nations used the term, "warmth or cold wrapped around them."

This was actual cold wrapping around him. It was a feeling he only ever knew from the General touching him, and that's what this was. The General was there, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Ivan looked back, purple eyes searching, but The General had not materialized this time.

Hoar frost tipped his hair as an icy breath came close to his ear and breathed out, "Be careful with him."

Ivan nodded, and the cold weight on his shoulders left him as The General removed his hands and seemingly disappeared.

Ivan stepped into the house, careful to be quiet. He hadn't knocked. He wasn't too sure if Canada was in a fit state to answer. He hadn't been when he had left, after all. And, despite his concern and how he had even overcome his emotions surrounding the thought of it, he had called the other Nation's so-called "family" and none of them had been interested in coming over. Sure, it was hidden up with excuses, but he had the feeling that this was the kind of treatment that Canada normally received from them, and it made his blood boil. So, in spite of Canada's delicate state, Ivan had left him alone when he'd left to see The General. After he had left, he'd thought of how he could have probably ordered Lithuania over to watch over Mathew, but hindsight is 20/20. 

He hadn't been gone too terribly long though, so he was mostly sure that barring a very sudden change of heart that he was likely safe to assume that Mathew's "family" hadn't come by. So he felt safe enough to come straight in and not expect an attack from the American. However, one concern remained and caused his cautious entry: Canada's polar bear was an entirely different matter from Canada's family and their potential threat.

It hadn't been there when he had come by and was caring for the Canadian before, but one could never be too cautious around polar bears. Sometimes they looked cuddly, then next thing you know, they are trying to bite your head off, and he didn't know if Canada's hadn't somehow come back while he was gone.

He never had understood what the small blond Nation saw in the creature he kept around. Supposedly, it was seen as "the cutest little thing" by the majority of the female Nations, but he knew Canada was not of that opinion and so was at a loss as to why the other man kept it around.

Seeing nothing, he strode forward, leaving his shoes by the door, but, as always, keeping his coat and scarf on.

Despite Canada seemingly not noticing his Curse, he wanted his scarf to stay. On the topic of Canada being affected by his Curse…

Maybe that was why he was drawn to the other. Everyone else, even his sisters were affected by his Curse. Everyone was, except for Canada, or at least it hadn't seemed to affect him ever before. Well, besides that one time at the meeting where he'd tried to test the boundaries of his Curse and see how close he could get to the other before his Curse affected them and ended up sitting on the other Nation…

Apparently, he had to have extremely close contact for his Curse to work against him when it came to the smaller winter Nation.

Ivan felt his thoughts straying along what that meant to him, to have someone that could actually touch him, and could stay in his presence completely unaffected, then firmly shut those straying thoughts down. This was no time to be thinking of that.

Ivan ignored the snide emotional part of his brain, the part that had wanted to think about Mathew in ways he wasn't too sure he was ready to think about the other in, the part that was currently saying that if he never let himself think about it then nothing would ever happen. He would never have his greatest wish fulfilled. He would never look into the idea of Canada as anything other than a fellow Nation and possibly a friend because he was scared.

He wasn't scared, thank you very much. He just couldn't think of that right now.

Therefore, despite Canada's seeming near-immunity to it, the scarf stayed on. It was his security blanket, the only thing he'd found that had ever lessoned his curse's impact on the people around himself. He nearly couldn't take it off. He could only both thank his sister and simultaneously wish that his own Curse was as harmless as his sister's curse of always making those around her happy no matter their previous feelings and bemoan that she could have gotten so lucky.

It was as he had reached the stairs leading up to Mathew's room and had taken the first step that a growl sounded from the top of the stairs.

There, nearly hidden in the shadows, was Canada's polar bear.

Ivan cursed under his breath, and halted still half on and half off that first carpeted step, and the polar bear advanced slowly down the stairs towards him, still growling with its hackles raised and fangs bared.  
________________________________________  
*Mathew/Canada's POV*  
________________________________________  
'But you feel nothing, remember? It's just cold all the time. Stop thinking about him. Stop. Stop. Stop,' Mathew told himself, or at least tried to, then stopped the mantra abruptly from its continuous utterance as the flash of remembrance filtered across his mind of a noise from earlier down by the stairs…which reminded him of how Ivan must still be in the house with him...and of the flashes of warmth he felt whenever the other male was near him.

He had at best been barely lucid since the meeting, but he remembered and just plain knew that the other had been there taking care of him.

It had been enough to bring him that loose lucidity and slight remembrance of his surroundings, but it wasn't enough to cure him. He could feel how the chill had a gripping hold on his insides. The absolute loss of warmth hovered threateningly near.

He knew that he had just gone unconscious again not too long ago. He felt the time missing, and wondered as to why.

Maybe Ivan had left his presence?

It had always been when the other was near that he had felt his best and his strength had almost started returning...it would make sense if Ivan leaving him would cause an opposite reaction...

Then, the sound coming from the area by the stairs outside of his bedroom door registered in his mind and he sat bolt upright, ignoring the wave of vertigo that wanted to send him back into nothingness on his bed.

Kumjairo was guarding him! And apparently felt that either he or Mathew was threatened enough to give warning of attack…

Ivan! Where was he? Was he okay?

Mathew swung his feet out of bed, and still shivering grabbed a wool cardigan as he passed it be and headed into the hallway.

No matter how weak he felt, he had to make sure that Ivan was okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? Anything I should add? Any guesses as to where I am going with this? XD

**Author's Note:**

> So, what do you guys think?
> 
> Do you guys want a French, German, or Dutch version to this? I can make one up if so. 
> 
> Hugs and Wuvs,  
> North of the North


End file.
